Can’t believe my baby is turning twenty. To celebrate we are having a houseful in our desert home. Family tradition dictates that the birthday girl picks the meal- or in this case meals. Tonight the request is pistachio pesto with grilled shrimp.

One of the challenges of a vacation home is that it isn’t quite equipped like our more permanent one back east. A certain plus is that it has none of the clutter, but when you turn to one of your tried and true recipes and realize you don’t have (in this case a cuisinart) you need to punt.

Thankfully we have a pretty good blender and if I don’t put more than one recipe of pesto in at a time all should be fine.

Combine chopped garlic, basil, mint, shelled pistachios, Parmesan, soy sauce, Tabasco and olive oil in a blender and pulse until completely combined but still with lots of texture.

To peel shrimp so the tail stays intact. Pull up and break off the little tip of the tail. Once this is removed the rest of the tail simply slips off.

Toss some freshly peeled shrimp in one tablespoon pesto mixed with another tablespoon olive oil.

Grill until just cooked through about 1 minute per side over high coals. Meanwhile cook one pound linguini according to the package, drain and toss with the remaining pesto. Top with the grilled shrimp.

There’s been a bit of bellyaching about a lack of pulled pork. An easy fix with pulled pork canapés.

This highly requested dessert/drink deserves a future solo post to attempt to do justice to its moniker- the “hummer”.

Until then combine softened vanilla ice cream with kahlua and vodka in a blender.

Pour into a plastic pitcher and freeze until needed. Because let’s be honest- who doesn’t want a little …?

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about sandy
Wherever I find myself, I’m happiest with a full dining room table. As a former professional chef and caterer I want to share what I’ve learned over the past three decades of entertaining. On this site you’ll find tricks of the trade to help even the most harried of you pull off a seemingly seamless fête. Come join the conversation! read more →

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